One disclaimer about both The Best Choice and National Tree Company trees: like many artificial trees in their price range, they are made with PVC rather than PE. As we mentioned earlier, some people are dubious about the potential health risks of being around PVC. While finding a tree with less PVC and more PE (a safer alternative) is possible, it will typically cost you more.

A Bremen guild chronicle of 1570 reports that a small tree decorated with "apples, nuts, dates, pretzels and paper flowers" was erected in the guild-house for the benefit of the guild members' children, who collected the dainties on Christmas Day.[27] In 1584, the pastor and chronicler Balthasar Russow in his Chronica der Provinz Lyfflandt (1584) wrote of an established tradition of setting up a decorated spruce at the market square, where the young men "went with a flock of maidens and women, first sang and danced there and then set the tree aflame".

The experts almost universally agree that the Krinner Tree Genie is the top stand on the market. The Sweethome (now Wirecutter) has picked it as the best Christmas tree stand for four years in a row because of its one-of-a-kind design that is versatile, secure, and easy to set up. WRAL, a new station in North Carolina, posted an in-depth test of the tree. The reviewers found it had no trouble supporting a twelve-foot tree and required minimal effort to set up. Galt Technology called it the most convenient tree stand because it was easy to assemble and "install" the tree.

Imagine a Christmas tree wreathed in lights, smelling of fresh pine, and ladened with presents underneath. Whether your holiday season is more religious or more secular in tone, nothing invokes yuletide cheer like a grand Christmas tree. But to keep the holiday spirit alive, and to protect your family, home, and the tree itself from accidents, a sturdy tree stand is a must.
This revolving metal tree stand provides a convenient This revolving metal tree stand provides a convenient way to easily move your tree. It is for use with 7.5 ft. to 8 ft. tall artificial trees with 1.25 in. Dia center poles. This stand features sturdy steel construction and folds flat for convenient storage. All 4 wheels include locks ... More + Product Details Close
Great decoration for the holidays. Everyone who's seen it loves it. Taking away one star b/c the base doesn't go together very well. The main trunk of the tree is threaded at the bottom. The threads go through the top plank of the base and screw into the bottom plank. However, the threaded bit is too long, so it makes the whole thing wobbly if you tighten it all the way. I had to unscrew the trunk to the point that the bottom of the threads were flush with the bottom of the base, which made the top plank very loose. Still, If you don't move it around too much it's not a big issue. The blanket actually holds the base planks in place pretty well.
Over the years, other styles of artificial Christmas trees have evolved and become popular. In 1930, the U.S.-based Addis Brush Company created the first artificial Christmas tree made from brush bristles.[98] Another type of artificial tree is the aluminum Christmas tree,[94] first manufactured in Chicago in 1958,[99] and later in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, where the majority of the trees were produced.[100] Most modern artificial Christmas trees are made from plastic recycled from used packaging materials, such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC).[94] Approximately 10% of artificial Christmas trees are using virgin suspension PVC resin; despite being plastic most artificial trees are not recyclable or biodegradable.[101]
Every home needs a touch of red and green during the holidays. This year, we freshened the typical motif with a shapely wreath made from real Granny Smith apples wired to a florist foam wreath form with florist picks. Red hypericum berries and bay leaves fill out the rest of the wreath. The apples do make this wreath weighty, so hang it from a sturdy nail.
The LED-lit Feel Real Downswept Douglas Fir (PEDD1-D12-75) has nearly 2,000 lifelike polyethylene branch tips surrounding a core of PVC “pine needles” (a construction used on all high-quality artificial trees). And at 37 percent polyethylene, it has a higher proportion of those lifelike branches than our other picks, creating a truly convincing illusion of a living tree. Its 750 LED bulbs fill its branches nicely, and the lights can switch from all-white to multicolor, giving it uncommon versatility. (The vast majority of pre-lit artificial trees are one style or the other, though all our picks can switch back and forth.) The light strings connect directly when you fit the tree sections together. At 7½ feet high and almost 5 feet across (59 inches to be exact), the tree is generously proportioned; it’ll fill the corner of almost any living room. Finally, it’s widely available, easy to set up, and competitively priced. (For smaller homes, we recommend the 6.5-foot version of this tree).
The Black and Decker BD3037 Smart Stand came in last in our roundup. The design looks very domineering and that's actually a problem. It sticks out like a bear-trap-like thumb. It also doesn't work that well. The advertisements tout a ten-second setup time and we did find that to be true. What you do is that you lock the three pongs into place and force the tree through them. The problem was we couldn't get our tree straight or stable.
Puleo is Larry Gurino’s favored brand at House of Holiday; like National Tree, it’s a New Jersey–based, family-run business. Unfortunately, Puleo is not as widely available as some other brands, but its quality ranks among the best. Gurino has sold Puleo trees for 20 years, and they were some of the nicest-looking trees we came across in our search. If you find one you like, you can be confident in your purchase.
Artificial Christmas trees are a great way to save time and money each year. We carry a wide array of realistic faux holiday trees available both unlit or pre-lit with LED and incandescent lights. We also carry imitation alpines, colored trees, and fiber optic trees from quality brands including Darice, Northlight and Vickerman. All artificial trees are available in a variety of styles and sizes, including giant commercial sizes and slim, space-saving options.
In addition to different materials and levels of realism, Balsam Hill offers four Signature artificial Christmas tree collections, including Aspen Christmas Signature, Vermont Signature, Napa Christmas Signature, and Smoky Mountain Christmas Signature. All 12 foot and under Christmas trees in these collections even come with our 3-year limited warranty. So, you can rest assured that your Balsam Hill artificial Christmas tree will look flawless all season long, and for years to come!